Legal Insights
Plain-language guides and case briefs on Philippine law — researched from the firm's law library of 184,000+ statutes, Supreme Court decisions, and agency issuances, and written so non-lawyers can understand and act on them.
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Limits of Self-Defense When Force Exceeds the Threat in Philippine Law
When a victim fights back against a rapist, does the law punish excessive force? Philippine jurisprudence explains the limits.
Backwages Despite Just Cause Dismissal: When Procedure Matters in Labor Cases
Philippine Supreme Court ruling on backwages for employees dismissed for just cause but denied due process, and the limits of certiorari.
Client Inaction and Legal Default: When Silence on Attorney's Fees Backfires
A client's failure to act on a lawyer's billing can lead to default judgment. Learn the rules on attorney's fees and res judicata.
Double Jeopardy and Forum Shopping: When Filing Redundant Claims Backfires
The Supreme Court clarifies when filing multiple suits for the same cause of action constitutes forum shopping and why dismissal is proper.
Probationary Employees and Security of Tenure: Illegal Dismissal Rules in the Philippines
Philippine Supreme Court clarifies probationary employees' security of tenure, illegal dismissal remedies, and backwages under the Labor Code.
Eminent Domain and Reversion: Balancing Public Purpose and Landowner Rights
When government abandons an expropriated property's public purpose, can former owners get it back? The Supreme Court explains.
Final Decisions Stand: The Immutability of NLRC Rulings in Illegal Dismissal Cases
A final and executory NLRC decision cannot be modified. Learn what this means for illegal dismissal claims and back wages.
Back Wages and Security of Tenure: Reinstatement After Illegal Dismissal in the Philippine Civil Service
Learn when illegally dismissed government employees can claim back wages, based on a landmark Supreme Court ruling on security of tenure.
Illegal Dismissal: Full Back Wages Despite Subsequent Employment
Philippine Supreme Court ruling: illegally dismissed employees get full back wages, even if they found other work during the dismissal period.
When a Sale-Leaseback Is Really a Loan: Cebu Contractors Consortium v. Court of Appeals
The Supreme Court ruled that a sale-leaseback arrangement was actually an equitable mortgage, not a true financing lease, and ordered the contract reformed.
Sale and Leaseback as Disguised Loan: When Financial Leasing Is an Equitable Mortgage
Philippine Supreme Court clarifies when a sale and leaseback is a disguised loan secured by chattel mortgage, not a true financial lease.
Compromise Agreements Upholding Obligations AND Equitable Relief IN Property Disputes
Philippine Supreme Court ruling on sale-leaseback arrangements, equitable mortgages, and deed of assignment effects on debtor obligations.
Reimbursement for Utility Payments When a Subsequent Tenant Pays Another's Debt
When a new tenant pays a former tenant's unpaid utility bills, can they get their money back? The Supreme Court explains.
Regular Employment vs Fixed-Term Contracts: Security of Tenure in Philippine Labor Law
Philippine Supreme Court clarifies when fixed-term employees become regular workers entitled to security of tenure and full backwages.
Just Cause vs Due Process in Employee Dismissal: The Rosario Ruling
Philippine Supreme Court clarifies that a valid dismissal cause without procedural due process makes termination ineffectual, not illegal, and orders backwages.
Wrongful Dismissal Reinstatement and Backwages for Illegally Terminated Employees
Learn the rules on illegal dismissal, reinstatement, and backwages under Philippine labor law from a Supreme Court case.
Exhaustion of Administrative Remedies When Premature Court Intervention Fails
The Supreme Court affirms the dismissal of a police officer's back-pay suit, citing exhaustion of administrative remedies and the hierarchy of courts.
Good Faith Prevails: Exoneration From Dishonesty Charges in Veteran Preference Claims
Philippine Supreme Court rules good faith and truthfulness defeat dishonesty charges in veteran preference claims, allowing reinstatement with back salaries.
Reinstatement vs Abandonment: Computing Backwages in Illegal Dismissal Cases
When an illegally dismissed employee refuses reinstatement, does abandonment cut off backwages? The Supreme Court clarifies the rule.
Back Wages and Illegal Dismissal: What Salas v. PAGCOR Means for Employees
The Supreme Court clarifies that illegally dismissed employees are entitled to back wages even if later found guilty of separate administrative charges.
Full Backwages for Illegally Dismissed Employees: Computation Until Finality of Judgment
Learn how the Supreme Court ruled that illegally dismissed employees are entitled to full backwages until the finality of judgment, not just until dismissal.
Security of Tenure Prevails: Illegal Demotion and Reinstatement Rights in the Philippine Ports Authority
SC ruling: a permanent appointee cannot be demoted without cause and due process; reinstatement and backpay differentials explained.
Specific Tax on Stemmed Leaf Tobacco: Exemptions for Manufacturers Clarified
Supreme Court clarifies when stemmed leaf tobacco transfers between manufacturers are exempt from specific tax under the NIRC.
Voluntariness and Comprehension in Guilty Pleas: Protecting the Accused in Capital Offenses
The Supreme Court clarifies what a "searching inquiry" requires when an accused pleads guilty to a capital offense, using a rape case as the backdrop.